Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Kirby Smart shares insane reality of new starting center Jared Wilson

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Kelsey Kramer | Last updated 3/20/24

Georgia Bulldogs' new starting center Jared Wilson has big shoes to fill, having to replace the legendary Sedrick Van Pran.

But head coach Kirby Smart has plenty of belief in him.

Smart spoke to reporters on Tuesday where he had nothing but great things to say about the future of Wilson as the new heart of the Bulldogs' trenches.

"I'm excited for the rest of the world to get to see Jared Wilson," Smart said. "This is a guy that number one, I don't put a lot of high expectations and anoint people -- he has a lot to do to be the best player he can be. But when you talk about athleticism at the center position, this guy runs faster than a lot of our defensive backs, believe it or not, or our tight ends, our quarterbacks. I mean his numbers [are] extremely athletic, over 300 pounds, can get to the second level as quick as anybody. Just really athletic."

That's absurdly fast for a big guy who weighs in at 6-foot-4 and 310 pounds -- not to mention absolutely terrifying for opposing defenses.

Smart also emphasized that while Wilson had a great teacher under Van Pran, you can't teach freak athleticism.

"He's had the great fortune of learning from Sed," Smart said. "Unfortunately, that's not a position you rotate at a ton so he didn't get a lot of opportunities to go in and play like maybe a Mims or Dylan Fairchild. ... He didn't get an opportunity to do a lot of those things, but he is a really, really good athlete and even better person.

Despite having zero starts, Wilson saw action in 13 of 14 games for the Bulldogs in 2023 and played an integral role in an offensive line that finished ranked second in the SEC in total offense and fifth nationally.

"We just enjoyed his leadership and I'm looking forward to the center being the leader of the group like Sed was," Smart said. "He's taking on a new role and doing it his way."

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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